Cursed Realm of the Faceless Ghost

Gruesome Grizzly 8K

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Location:

Provo,UT,

Member Since:

Apr 07, 2010

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Other

Running Accomplishments:

5K - 17:11 (Cougar Run)

10K - 34:35 (Deseret News)

15K - 57:33 (Utah Running Club)

1/2 - 1:22:26 (Mountain View Trail)

50K - 4:22:31 (Sapper Joe)

Short-Term Running Goals:

Sub-2:45 at Saint George Marathon

Win the Antelope Island half marathon

Long-Term Running Goals:

I'd like to run the Angeles Crest 100 at some point. And I'd still like to go sub-4 at a trail 50k. Other than that, I'm open to suggestions.

https://www.strava.com/athletes/4808912

Personal:

<iframe height='160' width='300' frameborder='0' allowtransparency='true' scrolling='no' src='https://www.strava.com/athletes/4808912/activity-summary/184689bbf831149f2053e60709730c07651232d3'></iframe>

<iframe height='454' width='300' frameborder='0' allowtransparency='true' scrolling='no' src='https://www.strava.com/athletes/4808912/latest-rides/184689bbf831149f2053e60709730c07651232d3'></iframe>

I was a competitive cyclist for years. In 2009, after racing in the Tour of Utah, I decided I had plateaued as a cyclist--I could continue to improve, but I wouldn't break through to a new level. So, I started looking for a new challenge.


I thought that challenge would be mountain biking, but I'm a terrible bike handler. I married Catherine in January 2010 and a couple of weeks later I entered the SLTC Winter Training Series with her. A couple of weeks after that I decided I'd like to run ultras, so I signed up for a couple of 50Ks to get started.

Those first races came and went, with varying results. I was looking forward to running more and possibly pushing into the longer distances, but I injured my knee in June 2010 and I've never been consistently healthy since.

I started law school in August 2010, which meant less time for training. In June 2011, Baby Elliott was born, which meant even less time for training. But she's worth it. 

Baby Nora joined us in October 2013, with the same effect on training as Elliott (who, incidentally, is no longer a baby). 

I (finally) finished school in April 2014 and now I'm an evil corporate lawyer in Salt Lake. I have no illusions that I'll ever get back into the shape that I once was, but I'm perfectly at peace with that. I still have many goals to accomplish and many years in which to do it. 

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Race: Gruesome Grizzly 8K (5 Miles) 00:49:03, Place overall: 31, Place in age division: 6
Total Distance
9.00

AM: Catherine and I went down to Provo for the Gruesome Grizzly 8K. I'm sure I could learn some lessons from this morning, but right now I'd rather forget the whole thing.

I wasn't even sure if I should be running because of my knee, and by the time we arrived at the start I decided that I was going to run with Catherine instead of racing off the front. But when we started I couldn't resist, and I settled into third place as we left the parking lot.

I was fine up the first climb, but my stomach felt a little off. That's no surprise--it usually feels off when I push hard. I think that's because I almost never train for this kind of effort, so when it's time to go my stomach doesn't know what to do. Anyways, instead of pushing through I gave up mentally, and shortly after, on the Grizzly climb, I pretty much gave up physically.

I could have run that climb, but instead I walked most of it (almost all of it, in fact). Several runners caught me and passed me, but I decided to tuck into the group and hang on for the ride. At the top of the climb I passed a couple of runners on the flat and settled into a groove, but I just couldn't push. My head wasn't in the game, and my body responded accordingly. I'm the master of negative self-talk, and after a mile I had worked myself into quite a funk.

So of course, when my knee started acting up on the descent, I cracked. I don't regret that I walked in for the last 1.5 miles--there was no reason to push through and make my knee worse--but I do regret that I was happy to have an excuse to quit, and I'm disappointed with the way my race went up until that point.

It's interesting to listen to your thoughts as runners pass you continuously as you walk to the finish. Mine fell into three categories: jealousy ("look at that punk running--I wish I could still run"), guilt (almost every runner who passed me had something encouraging to say--I wish I could have responded by putting in an effort), and shame(I felt this urge to explain to everyone that I was walking because I was hurt because I was afraid people would think I just couldn't handle the course). 

 

Anyways, some days are better than others. After the race, Catherine and I chatted with Jun for a while, and we both won prizes in the raffle. Plus, Catherine took third in her age group, extending her reign of terror (such as it is) to two weeks. So it wasn't all bad :)

PM: Catherine had to work in the afternoon, so I decided to hike up Grandeur Peak after lunch. (And that was a planned hike--not a planned run that turned into a hike when I couldn't cut it.) That trail is still a beast--over 3,00 feet of vertical in about two miles. My knee was fine on the way up, but it protested all the way down. In fact, I actually descended more slowly than I climbed. Needless to say, my knee and I are not on speaking terms right now. 

 

Brooks Cascadia 4 Miles: 4.00New Balance MT100 Miles: 5.00
Weight: 164.40
Comments
From catherine on Sat, Jun 26, 2010 at 21:25:32 from 67.169.248.86

And thanks to the FRB-er who took the picture. :)

From Nan on Sun, Jun 27, 2010 at 00:15:22 from 174.51.250.151

Oh man. Sorry to hear about your "learning" experience. You just need to get that knee better before training hard and certainly before racing again. Its just way too much to ask of yourself to try and race on an injury and stay mentally positive. Chalk it up to experience and focus on healing.

From Aaron Kennard on Sun, Jun 27, 2010 at 00:33:51 from 174.51.250.151

That really sucks about your knee. About 8 years ago I was out of commission and couldn't run or bike at all for about 5 solid months with knee/tendon issues, right during the middle of the summer. It was annoying..to say the least...so I can more than relate. I hope you heal soon. Resisting pushing it, resting, and active recovery are probably imperative to that though...unfortunately its now summer and this is the hardest time to resist going up and down mountains. But if its hurting you to even walk down hills, that's a huge red flag that you need some time to heal.

From baldnspicy on Mon, Jun 28, 2010 at 10:36:07 from 72.77.112.14

Sorry to hear about your less-than-happy experience! I engage in a little negative talk at times too. Give your knee some silent treatment. It will come around. Never works on my wife, but does on my legs. Good luck!

Hey, who's that guy in the white shirt behind you? Oh, never mind, I don't know him. :-)

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